Vick Learned His Lesson, Now It's Time To Be A Qb

David Squires

August 13, 2009|By DAVID SQUIRES Daily Press

Michael Vick has had to face the owner, the federal judges, the warden and the big bad NFL commissioner, but probably the toughest group he has faced were the youths at the Boys & Girls Club in Newport News.

Vick spent much of July working with them while finishing his sentence on dogfighting convictions. And he didn't hesitate when I asked which question the kids asked most often: "Why did you fight dogs?"

The former Atlanta Falcons quarterback will probably feel more comfortable confronting 300-pound rushing defensive linemen once an NFL team picks him up.

But before his youthful jurors, Vick's answer was short and honest: "Stupidity."

From late June to late July, Vick spent 40 hours a week teaching health and fitness to the kids, working alongside regular staff members.

"I told them that I would help them in any way I could: No question is off limits," Vick said of his time spent with the children and teenagers in his old East End neighborhood.

Vick's big bust-out interview is Sunday on "60 Minutes," but I was able to gain some insight on what viewers might see when I caught up with him and a couple of his advisers last month.

Here are my impressions.

* Michael Vick is extremely confident, bordering on arrogant.

I was actually glad to see that because you have to be extremely confident to lead millionaire football players down the field for billion-dollar corporations.

* Michael Vick is extremely repentant.

You would be too if you lost more than $100 million, spent two years in prison and were kept away from the game you've loved all your life.

* Michael Vick is a changed man.

He is extremely serious about preaching against the evils of dogfighting, about working with young people and about his family.

I drew these conclusions after looking Vick straight in the eyes - man-to-man - and throwing a few questions his way.

He appeared to be very open and honest.

For instance, didn't he know the dogfighting activities would get him in trouble?

"In the back of your mind, you know it's wrong," Vick said, "but with the money and the ego, sometimes you fool yourself. Your ego gets the best of you."

Vick also admitted an affinity toward the pit bull breed as a kid.

"Growing up, you think the only reason to raise pit bulls is for fighting. That's just our culture," he said. "But later, we find that we have a lot of flaws in our culture."

Vick was referring to the prevalence of dogfighting activities and venues in the Hampton Roads area. His Bad Newz Kennels was set up in conjunction with longtime friends to breed and sell exotic dogs.

I gathered that he now realizes that in fighting those animals, they went way over the line.

In the end, just as Vick's father Michael Boddie told me in an interview in May, Vick said in our conversation that the prison experience made him a changed man.

"It made me become a better person," he said. "Because of what I went through, it'll make me smarter about everything else now. Not just football."

For one thing, his priorities are now in order.

"I would say my family is No. 1, and football is second. There is nothing else more important (than family)."

He also said he is proud of an agreement with the Humane Society to help spread the word "that fighting dogs is bad."

Vick said he is confident he will play football again - the only question is when.

Physically, Vick felt like he was getting there.

"The cannon will always be there," he said glancing left toward his throwing arm. "I've just got to keep these in shape," he added, glancing toward his legs.

Vick said he was unsure how it would feel the first time he comes out of the tunnel and enters an NFL stadium.